While HBO’s ongoing prequel House of the Dragon delves into House Targaryen’s history more than elsewhere on TV, King Aerys II Targaryen — depicted in Game of Thrones — is one of Westeros’ most important and infamous figures. He was portrayed in the flagship TV show by Liam Burke and David Rintoul in brief flashback sequences.
Despite the minimal screen time the character gets, his grim role in history as the Seven Kingdoms’ “Mad King” indirectly sets the core plot of Game of Thrones in motion. Several main and supporting characters of the series were alive long enough to know his cruelty toward the latter stages of his reign, with King Aerys II’s characteristics and demise creating a dark parallel with his daughter — Daenerys Targaryen.
The Earlier Years of King Aerys II Targaryen
| Born: | 244 AC (AC = after Aegon I’s Conquest), King’s Landing |
| Key events mentioned: | Dance of the Dragons (132 AC), War of the Ninepenny Kings (257 A |
The Targaryen family tree in Game of Thrones is a long, bloody, and complicated one. And while he’s known as one of the largest dark spots in the family line, the earlier years of his life weren’t as brutal as how it progressed and ended. Much of the Mad King’s influence can be seen in pieces throughout Game of Thrones. Though, by the time the core plot begins, it’s undoubtedly for all the worst reasons. The son of King Aegon V Targaryen — a change from the source material, as it was King Jaehaerys II in the books — and Betha Blackwood, Aerys II was said to have been a kind, generous, and ambitious person in his younger years.
Aerys fought for his kingly father’s cause during the War of the Ninepenny Kings, where the exiled House Blackfyre — comprised of Targaryen bastard children — attempted an invasion of Westeros. He even became close friends with Casterly Rock’s heir at the time, Tywin Lannister, who would later become the Hand of the King to Aerys. Aerys II would also carry on the Targaryen tradition of dynastic incest to keep the bloodline “pure” for the Dragonlord house, marrying his sister Rhaella Targaryen — the mother of Daenerys, Viserys, Rhaegar, and grandmother of Jon Snow. While the details are more ambiguous in the show compared to the books, this marriage was, by all accounts, a deeply unhappy — and abusive — one.
The events that led to Aerys ascending the throne were also grim affairs, as he became next in the royal line of succession when his father and brother, Duncan Targaryen, were killed in what became known as the Fire of Summerhall. The fire also killed the legendary knight Ser Duncan the Tall. The mysterious cause of the fire was allegedly an ill-fated attempt to revive dragon eggs, as they have been extinct since King Aegon III’s reign and the aftermath of the Dance of the Dragons that House of the Dragon is building toward.
Aerys II’s Kingly Reign Began Peacefully and Ended Morbidly
| Died: | 281 AC (murdered by Ser Jaime Lannister) |
| Deposed by: | Robert I Baratheon |
| Key events mentioned: | Defiance of Duskendale (~276 AC), Robert’s Rebellion (281 AC) |
After King Aerys II Targaryen ascended the Iron Throne, there was still some evidence of him being a wise and benevolent man, but that would erode with time as he succumbed to a combination of mental illnesses and family-related traumas. It’s far from a secret that the Targaryen family long upheld dynastic incest, and it’s been heavily implied that the wonton cruelty that mostly defined Aerys II’s reign was partly due to this practice — dubbed “Targaryen madness.” However, the miscarriages and stillbirths that his sister-wife Rhaella suffered likely also contributed.
He even went as far as deeming those lost potential children to be the results of an affair, imprisoning Rhaella with only two Septas to watch her. But another notable event was the Defiance of Duskendale when Lord Denys Darklyn of Duskendale and his wife, Lady Serala, refused to pay their taxes. This was around when King Aerys II Targaryen was already growing increasingly sadistic, paranoid, and untrusting, with him deciding to tend to this issue personally — without his Hand Tywin’s advisement. The King went with a small group of knights to arrest and order the execution of the Darklyns, but he ended up being imprisoned and tortured.
The History Of Westeros In House of the Dragon, Explained
The history of Westeros’ Targaryen dynasty in House of the Dragon and Game of Thrones is complicated, but there is a comprehensible timeline.
Even his ambitions as a peaceful and prosperous king ended, as Aerys eventually lost interest and his plans became steadily more bizarre. This included attempting to war with the Iron Bank over a financial dispute, expanding the Wall further north, and invading the Stepstones. His decision to avoid his Hand’s counsel during the Defiance was also a culmination of things, including the fact that a great deal of the peace from King Aerys’ early reign came from Tywin’s decision-making and quelling the former’s odd plans. It also didn’t help that Aerys lusted after Tywin’s wife, Joanna Lannister. The Defiance and the aftermath that accelerated Aerys’ descent into further cruelty is one of the main events that inspired the epithet “The Mad King.”
All of these events and King Aerys II Targaryen’s increasing villainy came to a boiling point in the war known as Robert’s Rebellion when Lyanna Stark — Eddard “Ned” Stark’s sister — was allegedly kidnapped by the king’s son Rhaegar. After the alleged kidnapping, Ned’s brother Brandon Stark rode to King’s Landing to demand justice for his sister but was arrested and ransomed to his father instead. But when Rickard Stark arrived in response, King Aerys arrested him too and brutally executed both of them. After being betrayed by his Hand and former friend Tywin, he famously ordered the burning of Kings Landing and the people in it, resulting in fan-favorite character and Kingsgaurdman Jaime Lannister stabbing Aerys in the back, murdering him. This final, bloody climax cemented King Aerys II Targaryen’s name as “The Mad King.”
Robert’s Rebellion — and Game of Thrones’ Plot — Was Sparked by Aerys II’s Murder
| Key events mentioned: | Robert’s Rebellion (281 AC), Battle of the Trident (281 AC) |
Many longtime fans guessed while Game of Thrones was still airing that Rhaegar didn’t kidnap Lyanna and also that Jon Snow was their secret Targaryen child. With his given name being Aegon Targaryen, this is arguably the most significant byproduct of King Aerys II’s reign — even if indirect. However, the rebellion led by Robert I Baratheon was the wider conflict around this plot reveal that served as Game of Thrones‘ catalyst.
Though King Aerys II was a vile ruler and deserved his demise and then some, Robert’s Rebellion was sparked by a grave misunderstanding. As noted by Bran Stark in the main TV series, it was built on the lie that Rhaegar Targaryen abused and kidnapped Lyanna Stark. Robert Baratheon — the man who deposed Aerys as King of the Seven Kingdoms — even killed Rhaegar at the Battle of the Trident toward the end of the rebellion. That event nearly stamped out the Targaryen bloodline and, naturally, led to Daenerys Targaryen laying her claim to the Iron Throne several years later. Overall, all of Aerys’ actions and crimes during his reign deserved being branded as the Mad King, and these consequences were felt to varying extents for several years throughout Game of Thrones.
